Fonds F621 - Canada Steamship Lines Limited fonds

The origin of Canada Steamship Lines lies with the Richelieu & Ontario Navigation Company, founded in 1845. One of the largest fleets existing in Canada in the nineteenth century, the company prospered, expanding to eighteen vessels operating between Toronto and Quebec.

In 1912-1913, the Richelieu & Ontario Navigation Company, Canada Interlake Lines, Ontario and Quebec Navigation Company, Lake Ontario and Bay of Quinte Steamboat Company, the Quebec Steamship Company, the Inland Lines and the Wolvin Lines came together under the leadership of Messrs. Anglin, Wolvin, Norcross and Enderby resulting in a mixed fleet of passemger ships and freighters which included such well-known vessels as the Noronic, Toiler and Turbinia. A peaceful corporate adjustment to the merger was not to be. Just one year after its formation participation in World War I cost the firm sixteen ships.

Under the stewardship of W.H. Coverdale, the firm regrouped after the war and was revitalized by the acquisition of both the Montreal Transportation Company and the Davie Shipbuilding and Repair Company and in 1925-1926 the Playfair company and the vessels of George Hall Shipping Ltd. were also acquired, creating a world-class fleet. By 1927 the CSL fleet consisted of 115 ships including twenty-three passenger vessels. The corporation then changed direction and abandoned ocean trade in favor of concentration on lake shipping. Many of the company's vessels and personnel were retired as a result of the Depression and throughout World War II the company lost six of its fleet. The War, however, also allowed the firm an expanding role in shipping iron ore from upper Lake Superior to to the steel mills and munition plants of central Canada and the United States.

After the war the company's passenger service was discontinued in favor of a concentration on freight alone. Under the leadership of T.R. McLagan, an engineer, a major fleet overhaul was begun, with an emphasis on technical innovation and efficiency rather than fleet expansion. With the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959, this technological refit was given new impetus and a twenty year building program was begun. Under the aegis of Power Corporation (1975) and L.R. Desmarais innovation continued to be the company's hallmark. In 1981 Power Corporation sold CSL to Paul Martin Jr., who consolidated his holdings in 1988 as Paul Martin Passage Holdings.Today CSL is one of the world's leading inland shippers.